The Mystery of Christmas

"The Mystery of Christmas" was the name of a special Primtime show aired this evening by CBS. I am not sure if this has aired previously, but there have been other programs similar in nature and equal in heresy. The graphic I am using was used by an organization that is actively refuting the outrageous assertions revolving around such heresy as The DaVinci Code, The Last Tomb of Jesus Program, The Gnostic Acts of Philip, The Gnostic Gospel According to Mary of Magdalene, and of course the infamous "Jesus Seminar."

It seems that whenever shows of this nature are broadcast on network television, the so called "scholars" are usually people who do not believe the Bible. John Dominic Crossan from the "Jesus Seminar" is a perfect example. He gave considerable commentary during the "Mystery of Christmas" program. In case you are unaware, I want to share a few of their beliefs with you:

The Jesus Seminar is a group of New Testament scholars who have been meeting periodically since 1985. The initial two hundred has now dwindled to about seventy-four active members. They initially focused on the sayings of Jesus within the four Gospels to determine the probability of His actually having said the things attributed to Him in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Each scholar offered his/her opinion on each "Jesus" statement by voting with different colored bead:

# Red: Jesus undoubtedly said this or something very like it.
# Pink: Jesus probably or might have said something like this.
# Gray: Jesus did not say this, but the ideas are close to His own.
# Black: Jesus did not say this; it represents a later tradition.
Their voting conclusions: Over 80% of the statements attributed to Jesus in the Gospels are, by voting consensus, either gray or black. This means that only 20% of Jesus' statements are likely to have been spoken by Him. The other 80% are most assuredly, they say, unlikely to have ever been uttered by Jesus.

Obviously the information they present concerning the incarnation and the virgin birth does not reflect biblical orthodoxy. They try to play the Gospels against one another and come to the conclusion that Jesus was conceived the same as you or I. I think they need to change their name to the "UnJesus Seminar."

be informed ... --craig